Austin Asking Rents Drop 16% in January—More Than Any Other Major Metro—And Are Now $400 Below Their Record High

Redfin reports the U.S. median asking rent was little changed from a year earlier, down 0.1% to $1,599

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--(NASDAQ: RDFN) — The median U.S. asking rent was $1,599 in January, little changed (-0.1%) from a year earlier and up 0.5% from a month earlier. That’s according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage.

The median asking rent per square foot fell 1.5% year over year to $1.80 and rose 0.8% month over month.

Rents are stabilizing because the number of available apartments is in sync with the number of people who want to rent those apartments. Asking rents skyrocketed during the pandemic moving frenzy because there weren’t enough apartments to go around, then dipped in 2023 and early 2024 because builders ramped up construction to meet newfound demand. Now, the number of new apartments hitting the market is tapering off, and demand, while strong, isn’t going gangbusters like it was during the pandemic.

“Rental supply and demand are in lockstep, which is keeping rent growth at bay, but that may not last long,” said Redfin Senior Economist Sheharyar Bokhari. “Apartment construction could be further hampered by new tariffs on building materials. At the same time, demand for apartments continues to grow as high mortgage rates and housing prices push homeownership out of reach for many Americans. Rents will tick up if demand starts to outpace supply in a meaningful way.”

In Austin, asking rents are now $400 below their all-time high

In Austin, TX, the median asking rent dropped 16% year over year in January to $1,399—the largest decline among the 44 major U.S. metropolitan areas Redfin analyzed. It’s now 22.2% ($400) below its $1,799 August 2023 record high.

Tampa, FL was home to the second largest decline (-8.2%), followed by Salt Lake City (-6.5%), Jacksonville, FL (-6.4%) and New York (-5%).

Asking rents are falling quickly in parts of Texas and Florida because those states have been building more housing than other states. Florida has also been grappling with intensifying natural disasters, which has made some people hesitant to live there.

Rents rose most in Cincinnati (15%), Providence, RI (13.4%), Louisville, KY (10.5%), Baltimore (10.2%) and Washington, D.C. (8.8%).

Asking rents are down across all apartment types, with 3+ bedrooms seeing the biggest drop

Asking rents fell across all bedroom counts for the seventh consecutive month in January.

The median asking rent for 3+ bedroom apartments dropped 1.7% year over year to $1,966. For 0-1 bedroom apartments, it fell 0.6% to $1,458, and for 2 bedroom apartments, it declined 0.4% to $1,674.

In Los Angeles, asking rents rise for 3+ bedroom apartments amid wildfires

There have been news reports of rental price gouging in the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires amid a surge in rental demand from displaced families. Overall, the median asking rent in the Los Angeles metro area was flat from a year earlier in January, at $2,780. The median asking rent for 3+ bedroom Los Angeles apartments, however, did tick up. It rose 3.9% year over year—the biggest increase since November 2023—to $3,950. Though it's worth noting that 3+ bedroom rents in Los Angeles were already starting to inch up prior to the fires. By comparison, asking rents for 0-1 bedroom Los Angeles apartments rose 0.6% year over year to $2,489, and asking rents for 2 bedroom apartments rose 0.8% to $3,175.

Los Angeles has the third highest overall median asking rent in the country, meaning many renters still have a hard time finding affordable apartments even though rents aren’t much different than they were a year ago.

To view the full report including charts, methodology and metro-level insights, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/rental-tracker-january-2025

About Redfin

Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate company. We help people find a place to live with brokerage, rentals, lending, and title insurance services. We run the country's #1 real estate brokerage site. Our customers can save thousands in fees while working with a top agent. Our home-buying customers see homes first with on-demand tours, and our lending and title services help them close quickly. Our rentals business empowers millions nationwide to find apartments and houses for rent. Since launching in 2006, we've saved customers more than $1.6 billion in commissions. We serve approximately 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada and employ over 4,000 people.

Redfin’s subsidiaries and affiliated brands include: Bay Equity Home Loans®, Rent.™, Apartment Guide®, Title Forward® and WalkScore®.

For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent, visit www.redfin.com. To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin Data Center. To be added to Redfin's press release distribution list, email [e-mail]. To view Redfin's press center, click here.